Laptop fan running different after XP upgrade

Hi all. Got a weird one for ya. I recently did some upgrades to my Compaq laptop (see my sig). After doing hardware upgrades (memory,hd,dvd drive), I formatted and installed XP Pro. But now, after installing XP, I noticed something odd with the laptop's processor fan. Just so you know, I DID install all the Compaq drivers specificly for XP Pro, and it made no difference.

So here's what was, and what is: With Win98, the fan used to run full high during boot-up, then once booted up, it would "idle" at a low speed ALWAYS, until the processor was working hard. Then it would speed up. All normal with that.

Now, with XP....the fan runs full high during boot up (just like before), but now when the computer is fully booted, the fan doesn't run AT ALL, until the processor is working hard. Then it speeds up.

So the only difference with XP, is I've lost that "constant slow idle" of the fan,when the processor isn't being taxed.
I haven't had any adverse affects happening from it, but I am noticing the keyboard is always quite warm now, where as before it wasn't.

The bios setup in this laptop is very sparce. It has only boot password, and system info in it. No power options, not even boot sequence setup choices. So I can't do any alterations there. There's no newer bios update available, other than the one I already have in there.

Anyone have any ideas how I can get that fan to maybe run full high all the time? I never run it on the battery, so I don't care about power saving.

I've tried things like Speedfan, and MotherboardMonitor, but they don't even acknowlege the fan or processor. I though I could maybe use MBM to alter the temp it was reading, and trick the fan into thinking the processor was running hot, so the fan would kick up high. (I did that in my Sony desktop for gaming).
I'm curious as to why XP has changed the way the fan runs, and if there's maybe something that can done within XP to alter the fans behavior.

I know this is a tough one guys. But any ideas are welcome.
While the processor is running fairly cool, I'd like to keep a continuous flow of air going thru the laptop like before, for the sake of the other components in there.

 

XP has better ACPI, and also most likely XP added better Power controls for that particular processor on that machine. When the fan throttles up, usually it is the OS doing the check out to make sure things are correct (don't want to get too technical). Sometimes machines will run better with XP then they would of with 98. Also, you may want to change from the 40gb/4200 hard drive in it and go with a 60gb/5400 or 80gb/7200 which you will see better performance.

All the drivers for your machine running XP Pro http://h18007.www1.hp.com/support/files/Armada/us/locate/64_1006.html

 

It could be Microsofts power management driver causing the issue that you described. It changed from Win98 to XP. The XP version is more battery sensitive, for lack of a better term, and would do this, to preserve power on a notebook battery. You could go into the power management program in Control Panel and change your configuration to see if this makes a difference! Hope this helps.

Sorry brownizs, didn't see you while I was typing my post!

 

That is okay. XP definitely has better power management, but also there are specific drivers that are at Compaq.com that should help manage the processor better also.

 

Ok. Well, the harddrive I JUST upgraded to is the 40GB one. It's a 5400RPM. It used to have a 12GB 4200RPM one in it. I'M EXTREMELY happy with the 40gig 5400RPM one. The old one was very noisy and slow. The new one zips along nicely, and is dead silent.
And yes, as I already said......I DID put the Compaq Rom-Paq drivers in it that are specifically for XP Pro. There's nothing I can do in the power management to get that fan to stay on at idle all the time.

It's definately not any problem for the processor as I said. That's actually running cooler with XP, than it was with 98. I'm guessing that's why it doesn't need to be on at all most of the time. I'm just concerned about increased heat in the rest of the case now. The graphics chip is whats creating that heat under the keyboard. And I'm sure it's just cuz it doesn't have that constant air flow all the time, thru the case now. Maybe I'll just get creative and add another fan. I saw somewhere that one can be bought that goes in the PCMCIA slot somehow. Maybe I'll go that route. I wish I knew enough about the circuitry in the laptop, so I could hardwire the fan directly to a 5V source, and run it full high all the time.

 

If concerned about higher heat, I would get a Laptop cooler like this http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=1047071&CatId=215 and it should help to keep it cool. I read through, and thought when I first read your post that you stated that you installed the correct XP patches, but could not remember.

Also keep in mind that XP is more processor intensive on some of the tasks, and older machines may have the stated problems where the graphics processor will run warmer then normal. Most people opt turn turn off all the eye candy and make XP behave more like Win2k, then have it in all its glory. Also you where not specific as to the RPM of the hard drive. Since you clarified it, that can cause heat also.

 

Check your Bios there may be settings for fan speed control.




Another thought er two,
Windows 98 to XP? you might have Bios update for full support of XP
Have you ever cleaned your laptop, might be having some dust build up, time for a Blow Job

 

On the Armada, there are no settings for Fan control, same for most of the other HP/Compaq laptops. The processor and OS adjusts the fan speed depending on heat. Now if he has the latest Bios which is dated '02, that should be correct in what it is doing. If not, I would suggest updating the Bios, due to there where changes in it.

 

Yup...It's got the latest bios. And like I said before, it's sparse. There's not really a whole lot you can do in the bios. Oh well, I guess that's the way it's just gonna be !!

 

I had the same problem with a compaq once when I upgraded to xp it got a bit warmer. now I have no idea about your particular armada, but! on most of the compaq laptops I have worked on there is a heatsink and fan combonation that vents outside. so you could turn that sucker on full all the time and that heatsink would run cooler, but the other heat producing components get none of tat fan. that new drive etc. So you can get a laptop cooler or a cool pad wich lifts the laptop up a bit but if the fan is running that how xp/compaq want it to run.

 

Yes, it has the sink/fan thing. Three years ago when I bought it from a guy at work, I had the whole thing apart to clean it etc. As part of that inspection/cleaning, I took off the sink to inspect the compound. Good thing I did, cuz all that was left to it was one little dried up flake, that looked like a piece of dandruff. LOL So I Arctic Silvered that.
It made a vast improvement.
But the way the fan used to be on constant before with 98, even though it was just idling slow, it did create a constant flow thru the whole thing. There's a row of slots in the front of the case, that take in air, and pretty much allow for a flow thru the whole thing.

I thought about trying to hardwire the fan to full high, but I don't know where I'd find a place to tap into. Plus, there's always the possibility if I do that, the machine will assume fan failure since it won't be plugged into the original fan header anymore. And it may not boot cuz of that.

As for using a pad cooler.......I'd have a few issues with that. First, I use the one and only usb port it has, for an i/r mouse. And I believe those pads are powered by the usb. Secondly, I use the laptop at work mostly. So I really don't like the idea of toting around a seperate pad I have to set up.

I'm getting real interested in trying one of those pcmcia fans, but all I can find on the web is some stories about them, but no place to actually find one for sale. Also, some of the write-ups I've read about them, say they won't run with XP due to the way XP's Power Management is set up. Something about since it just uses the 5V from the socket and no other pins, XP won't acknowlege the fans in there, and won't power up the slot or something. But I'd be willing to try one anyways, if I could find someone that sells them.

I even thought about buying some other tiny laptop fan. There's quite a few types and sizes of them. Then maybe install it as a second fan somewhere. Problem with that is, every square inch inside this laptop is occupied. There's absolutely no place one could be installed. Then of course, it would be back to finding out where the heck to wire it in.

But like I said, if I can't come up with a feasable solution, I can live with it. It's not causing any problem whatsoever. The problem is really just me. I'm over-obsessed with computer cooling. LOL